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Why You Should Give Nandina a Second Chance

Nandinas may bring to mind words like overgrown or invasive, but the Grumpy Gardener is urging you to reconsider. Learn about the right type of nandina that won't takeover your garden.

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<p>And now, The Grumpy Gardener. When I moved into my house many years ago, the first commandment my wife gave me was go outside and kill those nandinas in front of the house. She said those nandinas made our house look like it was abandoned. I couldn't understand it. Why do you want me to kill these things? I mean, they're nice, they have evergreen foliage, it's pretty [MUSIC] They have pretty red berries in the fall and winter, and they're easy, easy, easy, to grow. And that's when I discovered why people hate nandina. It's too easy. I mean, growing a nandina is like making a joke about Donald Trump's combover. Anybody can do that, right? You can take a nandina. You can grow it in the sun. You can grow it in the shade. You can grow it in good soil, you can grow it in bad soil. And it just. Won't die. And over time, the old mandies. They would spread out by roots. And they form these impenetrable thickets of roots. And they would just keep going and going and going. So, if you ever wanted to try and transplant one, you couldn't use a shovel. [MUSIC] You'd have to get a backhoe. [NOISE] But I'm happy to tell ya that not all nandinas now are those big, giant monsters that they're gonna take over the yard. Now we've got smaller, improved nandinas that don't spread and they stay small, like this one here. This is a member of our distinguished Southern Living plant collection. It's called blush pink. It's evergreen. The new foliage comes out, surprise, blush pink. In the fall, in the winter, it turns bright red. Now this one's not gonna be a giant it's gonna grow a couple of feet tall, a couple of feet wide. It's not gonna spread. You can put it under a low window and it's not gonna. Grow up and cover everything up, or you can grow it in a container. So let's not do anymore hating on nandinas, let's treat them like the nice plants they are. Blush pink, grumpy loves you, you're so cute, yes you are, yes you are. Yes you are.</p>

<p>And now, The Grumpy Gardener. When I moved into my house many years ago, the first commandment my wife gave me was go outside and kill those nandinas in front of the house. She said those nandinas made our house look like it was abandoned. I couldn't understand it. Why do you want me to kill these things? I mean, they're nice, they have evergreen foliage, it's pretty [MUSIC] They have pretty red berries in the fall and winter, and they're easy, easy, easy, to grow. And that's when I discovered why people hate nandina. It's too easy. I mean, growing a nandina is like making a joke about Donald Trump's combover. Anybody can do that, right? You can take a nandina. You can grow it in the sun. You can grow it in the shade. You can grow it in good soil, you can grow it in bad soil. And it just. Won't die. And over time, the old mandies. They would spread out by roots. And they form these impenetrable thickets of roots. And they would just keep going and going and going. So, if you ever wanted to try and transplant one, you couldn't use a shovel. [MUSIC] You'd have to get a backhoe. [NOISE] But I'm happy to tell ya that not all nandinas now are those big, giant monsters that they're gonna take over the yard. Now we've got smaller, improved nandinas that don't spread and they stay small, like this one here. This is a member of our distinguished Southern Living plant collection. It's called blush pink. It's evergreen. The new foliage comes out, surprise, blush pink. In the fall, in the winter, it turns bright red. Now this one's not gonna be a giant it's gonna grow a couple of feet tall, a couple of feet wide. It's not gonna spread. You can put it under a low window and it's not gonna. Grow up and cover everything up, or you can grow it in a container. So let's not do anymore hating on nandinas, let's treat them like the nice plants they are. Blush pink, grumpy loves you, you're so cute, yes you are, yes you are. Yes you are.</p>